Image: Adam Frank's CURRENT is a living map of Seattle's hydro-electric generation and electricity use. One of six temporary artworks and performances that celebrate The Next Fifty, the 50th anniversary of the 1962 World's Fair at Seattle Center. Photo by the artist.

Message from the director: Celebrating 50 years of arts in Seattle and The Next Fifty

The 1962 World's Fair put Seattle on the map, and this year Seattle Center celebrates the fair's 50th anniversary with The Next Fifty. Six months of artworks, events and activities at the Center April 21 through Oct. 21 will mark the legacy the fair left to the region and the opportunities that lie ahead. For the celebration's "Sustainable Futures Month," we're presenting six temporary artworks and performances that illustrate how contemporary artists are shaping the conversation around environmental sustainability.

Before the World's Fair, when people thought of Seattle it was as a point of entry to the 19th-century gold rush. The fair branded Seattle as a timely place celebrating science and technology and opening the door to the future. Dusting off the ways of the Old West, the fair took on a space-age name: Century 21 Exposition.

In 1962, nearly 10 million people enjoyed a broad range of attractions, including more than 2,500 performing arts events with acts from around the world. The futuristically themed fair gave the city a 74-acre park devoted to history, science, arts and culture, and the Space Age. It also gave us the Seattle Repertory Theatre, the cultural fundraising organization Poncho, and the Horiuchi Mural, all celebrating 50th anniversaries this year. It gave us Seattle Opera and its home McCaw Hall (Mercer Arts Arena in 1962), KeyArena (formerly the Washington State Pavilion), the Intiman Theatre (then the World's Fair Playhouse), and a "modern art pavilion" for the Seattle Art Museum.

The cultural legacy the fair left to the city was profound. Today, Seattle's creative vitality is nearly three times the national average—among the highest in the nation—according to the recent Creative Vitality Index released by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF). The measure is based on arts participation and employment. Nonprofit arts and arts-active organizations in Seattle earned $415 million in revenue in 2010. Ticket sales at Seattle's live performing arts venues generated $193 million in revenues. That's $235.17 per capita—nearly four-and-a-half times the national average.

Despite a down economy, we are a region of arts consumers. Overall participation in arts and culture activities in King County is 71 percent higher than the national average, according to a recent Local Arts Index report released by Americans for the Arts. County nonprofit arts organizations inject $254 per capita into the local economy compared to a national average of $58 per capita. And nonprofit arts revenues in King County are 248 percent higher than the national average.

And here's more good news. We're pleased to report that the governor signed Senate Bill 6574 last week, protecting up to $900,000 in estimated admission tax revenue to the city. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs receives 75 percent of admission tax revenues, which support our funding programs for Seattle's arts and cultural organizations and artists.

We're seeking artists to create temporary art installations along Greenwood Avenue North and the Central Waterfront for the project Art Interruptions. Art Interruptions encourages artists to install artworks on city sidewalks and parks and offer passers-by a brief interruption in their day with a moment of surprise, beauty or humor. Possible locations for artworks include street and park infrastructure and furniture (utility poles, trees, tree pits, walls, railings, stair risers, etc.). Up to 12 artists will be selected to develop artworks to be displayed for six weeks this summer.

Possible sidewalk and park locations include Greenwood Avenue North between North 65th and North 87th streets, Waterfront Park, Piers 62 and 63, and Pike Street Hill Climb between Alaskan Way and Western Avenue.

The call is open to artists residing in Washington state. Each selected artist will receive a $1,000 stipend. Application deadline is 11 p.m., Friday, May 4. Click here to apply.

SPU is restoring lower Mapes Creek and creating an open-stream channel in Beer Sheva Park to improve habitat for juvenile Chinook salmon in Lake Washington. The project area includes 52nd Avenue South, between Rainier Avenue South and South Henderson Street, and into the park.

The creek restoration is currently in design through early 2013 and construction is expected to begin in mid 2013. Project completion is expected in 2015. The artist or artist team will work with SPU and consultants to develop the artwork within the schedule of the restoration.

The call is open to professional artists residing in the United States. Application deadline is 11 p.m., Friday, May 18 (Pacific Daylight Time). The total budget for the artwork is $200,000, all-inclusive of fabrication, installation, travel, taxes and other project costs. Click here to apply.

Mark your calendars. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs' new Cultural Facilities Program will award one-time funding to Seattle arts, heritage, cultural and arts-service organizations for urgent-need capital projects including emergency facility renovations or the final-phase completion of new facilities. Applications will be available by mid-May. Application deadline is Wednesday, June 20.

Eligible organizations must have at least a three-year operating history as a legally established not-for-profit organization, have control of the facility through ownership or a longer-term lease, and demonstrate a record of ongoing artistic or cultural accomplishments in Seattle. Projects must be able to take place and be completed between September 2012 and December 2013.

From a living sculpture designed to manage stormwater runoff to a giant squid bike rack, we present six temporary artworks and performances that illustrate how artists are shaping the conversation around environmental sustainability. The artworks help celebrate The Next Fifty, the 50th anniversary of the 1962 World's Fair, at Seattle Center, April 21 to Oct. 21. Go here for specific locations and dates.

Adam Frank'sCURRENT is a real-time map of Seattle's hydroelectric generation and energy use projected onto the north wall in Seattle Center's Center House. Mandy Greer will create the 250-foot crocheted artwork Mater Matrix Mother and Medium. The artwork, in a full spectrum of blues, will be attached to trees and columns, creating a "river" that sits seven to 15 feet off the ground.

Stacy Levy'sStraw Garden: from Wattle to Watershed will be composed of wattles—tightly wrapped straw and coir cylinders and mats that aid in re-vegetation and erosion control on hillsides—arranged in configurations that resemble Baroque garden formations. The sculpture will morph into naturalistic patterns that resemble water as it moves across the landscape. Parking Squid, by artist Susan Robb, provides parking for eight or more bicycles within the tentacles of a deep-sea creature.

Beginning in May, uncover the world of urban rainfall and trace its travels from the clouds to the sewer lines in Stokley Towles' witty and insightful one-man performance Stormwater: Life in the Gutter. Towles will perform the nearly one-hour piece eight times throughout the month. Also in May, five filmmakers tap into the flow of water and invite viewers to reflect on the preservation of our water resources in the series of short films Water Calling.

Frank, Greer and Levy will discuss their artworks in a panel discussion, 2 to 3:30 p.m., Sunday, April 22, at Seattle Center's Center House as part of The Next Fifty's Earth Day Celebration. Julie Parrett, landscape architect, Seattle Design Commissioner and member of the Seattle Arts Commission's Public Art Advisory Committee, will moderate the panel.

The San Francisco artist group Rebar will unveil their temporary installation Seattlight at King Street Station's newly refurbished Jackson Plaza, 8 to 9 p.m., Friday, April 20. Stop by the station at 303 South Jackson St. and meet the artists as they light up the plaza.

Seattlight is a nighttime, interactive art piece designed to highlight the unseen pathways of pedestrian traffic through the plaza. The artwork lights up in response to the movements of people as they walk past and through the space.

The artwork was commissioned to celebrate the new public plaza created as part of the King Street Station restoration. The artwork will remain on view throughout 2012.

Get an update on the city's arts and cultural space development initiatives at a brown-bag session, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Thursday, May 3. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs and the Seattle Arts Commission present this free, public event at City Hall's Bertha Knight Landes Room, 601 Fifth Ave.

Hear findings and recommendations from last December's two-day event Cultural Space Seattle, which focused on shaping policies to keep and create affordable space for artists and arts organizations in Seattle. Artists, government leaders, arts administrators, investors, real estate developers and brokers, and interested citizens participated in workshops working towards a plan to advance an agenda for cultural space initiatives.

Art is fun! But it can also be dangerous. Learn about potential risks at a free workshop, Hidden Hazards in the Arts, noon to 3 p.m., Friday, May 11, at The Seattle Public Library, Central Branch, 4th floor, Room 2.

Learn about harmful chemicals, including toxic solvents and heavy metals, found in many art disciplines. Get an overview of toxicology and learn preventative steps to keep chemicals out of your body. Find out how to dispose of hazardous art supplies safely and inexpensively. Dave Waddell, Art Chemical Hazards Project coordinator with the Local Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County, will lead the workshop.

The workshop will include a Q&A session. Light refreshments will be provided.

The workshop is free and open to the public, but space is limited. To attend, RSVP to Tiffany Hedrick, public art conservation technician, (206) 615-1879.

Ever wonder what happens to old pull tabs from aluminum cans, the wire off champagne corks, or that old lathe from a room remodel? Well, wonder no more. You'll find these and many other objects reclaimed by several artists and put to good use in the exhibition Reclaimed: Artists Working with Recycled or Repurposed Materials. The exhibition is on view through June 1 at Seattle Municipal Tower Gallery.

In Tracks 2 (2009), Haack salvaged the lathe from old houses being torn down and reworked the rough-hewn wood into brightly painted, dimensional wall pieces. Beecher gathered tin cans and bottle caps and cut and wove the tossed debris into motifs in Candy Cobweb Quilt (2003). In The Disposable Heroes series (2005), Blackwell used thrown-away materials such as plastic forks or those iconic, red plastic cups and melted them to form life-sized heads.

City Curator and Collections Manager Deborah Paine selected the artworks from the city's Portable Works Collection. Nine of the artworks were recently purchased by the Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) Solid Waste Division using SPU 1% for Art funds.

This year we will celebrate the 10th annual Mayor's Arts Awards. The awards recognize the accomplishments of artists, arts and cultural organizations and community members committed to enriching their communities through the arts.

The Seattle Arts Commission will review public nominations and recommend recipients to Mayor McGinn for final selection. The mayor will honor the recipients at a public ceremony at Seattle Center, noon, Friday, Aug. 31. He will also open the Bumbershoot Visual Arts Exhibits for a free public preview that day.

Mayor Mike McGinn is looking for an artist to serve on the Seattle Design Commission. The artist will provide advice on plans for new public projects such as fire stations, parks and streetscapes, and on major projects affecting the city including the waterfront and light rail stations. The artist will also serve as the Design Commission's liaison to the Seattle Arts Commission's Public Art Advisory Committee.

The 10-member Design Commission includes architects, urban designers, environmental designers, urban planners, landscape architects, engineers, an artist, a member-at-large and one member from Get Engaged, the YMCA Young Civic Leaders program. For more information on the Design Commission, go here.

A letter of interest and resume is due April 9. Go here for information on how to apply. Contact Valerie Kinast with questions, (206) 233-7911.

Get Engaged program seeks youth for city boards and commissions

Get Engaged, the YMCA Young Civic Leaders program, is recruiting 15 young people aged 18 to 29 to serve for one year on Seattle's public boards and commissions. Commissioners help shape policy decisions, make recommendations and provide citizen participation in city government. The 15 boards range in interest areas—from design to human rights—and include a position with the Seattle Arts Commission.

In addition to serving on a public board, participants meet monthly as a cohort for leadership competency training, issue discussions and other activities.

Application deadline is May 14. For more information and to apply, go here. Contact Roni Ayalla with question at (206) 250-2456.

Film documents issues facing LGBT elderly, screening April 19

View a free, public screening of the documentary Ten More Good Years, noon to 2 p.m., Thursday, April 19 at Seattle City Hall's Bertha Knight Landes room. The 71-minute film focuses on issues facing the elder lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) population, including tax laws, Medicaid and Medicare regulations, Social Security and inheritance laws, and the need for non-discriminatory housing.

Meet film director Jacoby at a no-host, cocktail social at 8 p.m., April 19, at The Lobby Bar, 916 East Pike St. Or attend a special screening and meet the director, 7 p.m., Saturday, April 21 at The Lobby Bar.